If the friendship already has a group chat, a shared takeaway order, and one person who hosts every December, it can have a card too. On Ottermagic, Style Swap restyles a group photo that already has everyone in it. Brick, Chibi, Bobblehead, Action Figure, and Photobooth all suit a crowd that would never sit for a studio portrait. Preview until it looks like your lot, then drop the e-card into the chat, or print an A5 for the friend who is cooking. Start at Ottermagic.com.
This is the group card. One-to-one best-friend and sibling Christmas cards live in sister, brother and best friend. Everyday friendship, flatmates, miss-you and sorry cards sit in friendship Face Swap and Style Swap. Keep those for the person. Use this page for the pile of you.
Start with a photo that already has everyone
Style Swap is the group tool because it restyles the picture you upload, people and sofa and fairy lights included. You need faces that are actually visible. A pub table of eight, shot from the far end, will restyle a lot of ears. Crop tighter, or use a photo from a birthday when you were all facing the same phone.
Looks that usually survive a friend group:
- Photobooth for the slightly messy night, four expressions, one joke
- Brick and Chibi when the group already sends stickers all day
- Bobblehead and Action Figure for the Friendmas roast, if the people in the photo will laugh
- Classic Cartoon when you want it readable on a mantel at someone else's parents' house
- Retro Game or Pixel Art for the uni house that still has a console in the living room
Caricature can be unkind in a group. If one person is already tired of being the joke, skip it. Preview as if it will be screenshotted.
Face Swap puts a face into a finished scene. Some designs are built around one person. If a live Face Swap design asks for more than one face, follow the on-screen steps and judge the preview. If it asks for one, crop to that person, or make coordinating cards for two friends instead of forcing a merge. The honest write-up is couple, family and multiple-face Face Swap. For a group of five, Style Swap of a clear group photo is the first try.
Pet Swap is for the flat cat who attends every film night. Text Swap covers a named in-joke on the front when nobody has a usable picture and you still want "Happy Friendmas, 4 Privet Terrace" in type.
Live styles: Brick, Chibi, Emoji, Anime, Watercolour, Caricature, Cartoon, Classic Cartoon, Action Figure, Clay 3D, Retro Halftone, Retro Game, Royal Portrait, Pixel Art, Bobblehead, Sticker Sheet, Tarot Card, Photobooth, Sketch, Lucky Leprechaun.
The e-card in the group chat
On the storefront the digital option is labelled E-card. After you pay, you get a hi-res, watermark-free download. Save that file, then send it the way the group already talks: WhatsApp, iMessage, Discord, a shared album. There is no Ottermagic button inside the chat, and there is no group-signing page where everyone adds a scribble. One person makes the card, then shares the image.
That is enough for:
- the "we exist" Christmas message when nobody can agree on a meal
- a thank-you the morning after Friendmas
- the far-away member who moved for work and still lives in the chat
- a joke card at 11pm on the 24th, when post would miss
How to download and attach the file is in how to send an Ottermagic e-card. A comparison with library e-card sites is in e-cards vs a digital download from your photo.
Use the paid download, not a screenshot of the watermarked preview.
A printed A5 for the friend who hosts Friendmas
Someone bought the extra chairs. They get paper.
UK printed cards are A5 folded (148×210mm), 330gsm gloss, envelope included, printed to order in the UK, posted with Royal Mail in around 3–5 working days, recyclable stock, water-based inks. Blank inside, or a printed message if several of you are contributing a sentence and you want it neat.
Address it to them, not to the group. "Happy Friendmas. Thank you for the table, the oven, and pretending the gravy was meant to be that colour. Love from the rest of us." is a complete card. You can still send the e-card to everyone else the same afternoon.
If you want the portrait on their wall as well, posters and canvas are offered from the same artwork. Check Ottermagic.com for live details. A card that sits with a bottle or a box of biscuits is the job in a card to go with a present.
Leave enough working days. Use Christmas posting deadlines and how late to order for timing.
Message ideas (funny, not mean)
The group already has the in-jokes. You only need one of them, plus a wish.
- "Another year of the same chat, slightly different hair. Happy Christmas."
- "For the person who hosted. We brought pudding and this Brick version of us. Love from the group chat."
- "Uni house 2019–2022, still not over the heating bill. Merry Christmas from the four of us."
- "This is the only time this year we all looked at the same camera. Honour it."
- "To the flatmates: thank you for the fridge politics. Happy Christmas. The cat says nothing."
Keep office-adjacent groups kinder than the group chat at 1am. If someone is going through a breakup or a grim job, Bobblehead may not be the week.
US phrasing, same group
Friendmas, Friendsgiving leftovers, college housemates, the group chat that never sleeps: the photo rules do not change. Style Swap the group shot, then send the e-card into iMessage or WhatsApp. For the host who wants paper, the US shop (prices in dollars) sends the same printed A5 by airmail to US addresses in around 2–3 weeks, untracked, so order about three weeks ahead. Roommate is the US word for flatmate; the card is the same. If a printed A5 needs to reach a UK host, switch to the UK shop and send it to that address.
Checkout in the UK shop is in pounds, and in the US shop it is in dollars. Support: support@ottermagic.com (reply within one working day). Preview as a guest; sign in when you buy.
Ready when you are
Give the group a front that looks like them, then send it where they already live. Upload a photo with everyone actually in it, Style Swap it into Photobooth, Brick, Chibi, Bobblehead, or Action Figure, and keep the preview you would still laugh at in January. Drop the e-card in the chat, and print an A5 330gsm gloss card for the friend who hosted. Start at Ottermagic.com.
FAQ
Can I make a Christmas card from a group photo of my friends?
Yes. Style Swap is the path, because it restyles a picture that already contains everyone. Faces need to be a similar size and in focus. Crop out the empty half of the pub.
Does Face Swap work with several faces?
Sometimes, when the live design is set up for it. The preview is the answer. For a Friendmas crowd, start with Style Swap. If a Face Swap template wants one face, crop to one friend or make two cards.
How do I send a Christmas card in the group chat?
Buy the e-card, download the hi-res file, and attach it. One person orders. Everyone else can save it.
What is a Friendmas card?
A Christmas card for the friendship, often for the person who hosts the meal. A Style Swap of the group on the front, a thank-you inside, printed for them and maybe an e-card for the rest.
